Project Zero: Achieving water neutrality
Water is one of our most precious resources, but new housing and climate change are putting growing pressure on rivers, aquifers, and reservoirs. By 2032, new homes in our area are expected to use an extra 83 million litres of water every day.
That’s why, in 2021, Affinity Water and its partners launched Project Zero, funded by Ofwat and Nesta. The aim is water neutrality — making sure new homes don’t take any more water from local supplies.
This page is your hub for water neutrality. Here you can:
- Learn how water neutrality and NAVs (New Appointments and Variations) work.
- Find ways to make homes, developments, and businesses more water efficient.
- Explore real examples and tools to help you take action.
What is water neutrality?
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Water neutrality means that new housing developments do not increase total water demand on local supplies.
This can be achieved by:
- Reducing water use through water-efficient fittings, appliances and water saving behaviours.
- Reusing water by utilising water reuse technologies such as rainwater harvesting and greywater recycling.
- Offsetting extra demand such as retrofitting existing buildings with water efficient devices or water reuse systems in local non-domestic settings.
What is a NAV?
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A NAV (New Appointment and Variation) is a water company licensed to serve a specific development or site.
NAVs:
- Provide water and/or wastewater services to new housing sites.
- Enable customer choice, developers can select their preferred supplier for water and/or wastewater services.
- Partner with Project Zero to deliver water-neutral housing.
- Help promote competition and innovation.
Case study: Bidwell West
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At Bidwell West in Houghton Regis, we partnered with IWNL, a licensed New Appointment and Variation (NAV) company, to trial water neutrality at 908 new homes by reducing water use through behaviour change and offsetting consumption from non-household properties.
Results
- 42% of households took a water-saving pledge.
- Participants saved around 32.9 litres per day.
- Fixing a leaking toilet at a school had a savings of around 7,000 litres per day.
- The site achieved water positivity, returning 12,000 litres more water daily than it used.
Environmental incentives
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All new homes pay a £127 Environmental Component charge. Developers installing water-efficient fittings may qualify for Incentive credits — check your eligibility here.
Steering committee
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An Independent Steering Committee of industry experts and academics oversees Project Zero.
Their role:
- Ensure the project stays credible and deliverable.
- Review progress and tackle emerging challenges.
- Share best practice across the UK water industry.
If you have any questions about Water Neutrality or would like to get involved, please contact us: projectzero@affinitywater.co.uk.